The search for new energy sources is an ongoing concern for all humanity as concerns mount over the rate of depletion of oil reserves and other energy sources. Coal, natural gas, wind, solar, nuclear, and hydrogen have numerous hurdles to overcome regarding safety, reliability, and the safe disposal of waste product. The exploitation of new energy sources goes hand in hand with the problem of how to dispose of—and potentially reuse, recycle, or usefully convert—all of the waste material and product, both organic and inorganic, produced by humans, animals, and commercial, agricultural and industrial activities. As the protection and preservation of the environment is of paramount concern, the reuse and recycling of all manner of waste product—human and non-human; organic and inorganic—is being undertaken at all levels of society, whether it is personal, occupational, or governmental.
One of the most common and overlooked sources of waste and potential energy is livestock manure which can include, but is not limited to, manure produced by cattle, horses, sheep, goats, pigs, poultry etc. Such waste amounts to millions of pounds per year, and it must be disposed of in environmentally safe and governmentally approved methods. With economic circumstances squeezing agricultural establishments, especially small farms, along with the increased costs and complexities of appropriately disposing of all the waste materials and products, agricultural establishments and farmers are investigating ways to convert the waste material into a usable product, such as usable fuel that is both eco friendly and can generate profit for the farmer. The prior art discloses a variety of methods and processes for converting various types of organic and inorganic material into usable fuel product.
For example, the Jackman patent (U.S. Pat. No. 3,910,755) discloses a method and an apparatus for handling refuse, using waste and treating raw sewage wherein the material is processed into a source of energy.
The Beningson et al. patent (U.S. Pat. No. 4,063,903) discloses an apparatus for disposal of solid wastes and recovery of fuel product therefrom through the conversion of the organic fraction of such wastes to fuel by the recovery of the constituents of the inorganic fashion.
The Schulz patent (U.S. Pat. No. 4,152,119) discloses briquettes of a specified geometry and composition that are produced to serve as feed material or “burden” in a moving-burden gasifier for the production of a synthesis or fuel gas from organic solid waste materials and coal.
The Nielsen patent (U.S. Pat. No. 4,372,749) discloses a method for the manufacturing of fuel briquettes from selected components of garbage that are comminuted and combined with coal dust.
The Lindemann patent (U.S. Pat. No. 4,496,365) discloses a method of producing briquettes from organic waste products by the use of high pressure to produce sterilized fuel briquettes of high heating values.
The White patent (U.S. Pat. No. 6,506,223 B2) discloses a fuel pellet that is produced by the combination of organic waste material with a binder obtained by direct liquefaction and/or fast pyrolysis of biomass material.
The Miller patent (U.S. Pat. No. 6,544,425 B2) discloses a method of dewatering coal tailings and slurries and removing contaminants therefrom.
The Cullen patent application publication (U.S. patent pub. No. US 2007/0006526 AI) discloses fuel pellet briquettes manufactured from biomass and recovered coal slurries.
The Philipson patent (U.S. Pat. No. 7,252,691 B2) discloses a process for the conversion of municipal solid waste to combustible pellets of high fuel value.
Nonetheless, despite the ingenuity of the above apparatuses, methods, and processes, there remains a need for a process of creating an organic fuel brick from waste matter and organic material readily on agricultural and livestock farms.